Erste Group Bank (EBS) Q4 2025 (Media) earnings summary

Executive summary

• Achieved strong growth in 2025, driven by the acquisition in Poland and robust performance across Central and Eastern Europe, with net loan stock rising from €218.1bn to €232.0bn.

• Maintained a conservative business mix and strong capitalization, supporting stability and capital generation.

• Significant digital innovation, including AI rollouts and expansion of George Invest, targeting younger demographics.

• Integration of Santander Bank Poland completed, with rebranding to Erste Bank Polska underway and over 1,400 ATMs and 485 branches to be rebranded.

• Net profit rose 12.3% year-over-year to EUR 3,510 million, driven by higher net interest and fee income.

Financial highlights

• Loans grew by 6.4% year-over-year to €232.0bn, with Austria seeing a 3.3% increase and Czech Republic up 12.3%.

• Deposits increased by 6.7% overall, reaching €253.0bn, despite a slight dip in Austria.

• Net interest income increased 3.5% to €7,788mn, and net fee and commission income rose 8.6% to €3,191mn.

• Operational income rose 4.3% to nearly EUR 12 billion, with operating expenses up 5.8% to €5,583mn.

• CET1 ratio reached 19.34% pre-Poland consolidation; expected to normalize to 14.26% in 2026.

Outlook and guidance

• Integration of Erste Bank Polska to drive further growth, with loan portfolio expected to reach EUR 285 billion.

• 2026 guidance targets loan growth above 5% (excl. Poland), net interest income growth of ~5%, and net fee and commission income growth above 5%.

• Cost increase guidance at 3% for 2026, with a cost/income ratio of ~47%.

• Risk costs expected at 25-30 basis points including Poland, with NPL ratio stable around 2.4-2.5%.

• Dividend per share proposed at EUR 0.75 for 2025, with plans to return to previous levels in 2026.